Manual vs Automated Software Testing: What’s the Difference?

Software Quality Assurance (QA) Tester roles have shown a healthy job outlook for over three years, with available jobs and industry demand increasing year by year. What could this mean for you?

Well, if you’re looking to work in tech, the field of quality assurance offers a quick path toward your goal. However, software quality assurance testing is a huge domain that generally involves two types of testing: manual and automated. So before you break into the field, you’ll need to know the difference between these testing methods.

Manual vs. Automated Testing: Key Differences

How It Works

As the name suggests, manual testing requires QA specialists to conduct software testing manually. The QA specialist tests and runs a program or app through different scenarios, documenting any bugs or errors they find. A big portion of manual QA is the meticulous documentation of every process. Human judgment and thoughts come into play when checking the software.

Automated software testing involves QA specialists writing lines of code to automate the testing process, which cuts the time needed to validate software. QA specialists create scripted sequences executed by testing tools, simplifying the manual effort into a set of scripts. The process includes validating an app or other software to see if it’s working correctly and meeting requirements before the software is released to the public.

When to Use

Manual testing is best used when fast and accurate visual feedback is required. It also applies to more test situations. Because manual testing takes less time to implement than automated testing, it’s also better used when testing minor changes. And because tests are done manually, the process is less costly than creating and coding tools and processes.

As for automated testing, it is best used when you want to increase the efficiency and coverage of software testing. For example, if repetitive tests are needed, automated testing works better because once they are created, they can be used again and extended to perform other tasks. Automated testing also increases the scope and depth of tests that can help improve software quality.

Who Can Conduct the Test

The great thing about manual QA testing is that anyone can learn how to implement the process. No coding experience is required. That said, manual testers must be detail-oriented, possess project management skills, and have excellent communication skills.

On the other end, automated testing requires substantial coding skills and QA knowledge. Therefore, those who want to work in the automated QA field must have the traits of a manual tester and coding skills.

Where to Learn Software QA Testing

TEST PRO is a bootcamp that offers specialized training programs in quality assurance and software testing. It gives anyone, even those without a coding background, the opportunity to start a tech career.

Currently, the bootcamp offers two courses: QA Engineer and SDET.

QA Engineer

This nine-week course can equip you with the skills required in manual testing and QA engineering. The flexible program only requires that you attend classes three times a week.

The QA Engineer course covers the following topics, among others:

• Roles and responsibilities of a QA Engineer
• Test documentation, including writing test cases, checklists, and test plans
• SDLC (Systems Development Life Cycle) and STLC (Software Testing Life Cycle)
• Types of testing and how to apply them to real-life projects
• API testing, including analytics, tools, and traffic sniffing

Once you gain the technical skills to qualify for a manual testing job, you’ll gain access to TEST PRO’s career prep section. Here, you will learn how to optimize your resume, ace job interviews, and other skills to ultimately land a job.

SDET Course

TEST PRO’s SDET course includes the following modules:

1. QA Engineering Fundamentals

This module covers the same topics as the QA Engineer course, such as SDLC (Systems Development Life Cycle) and STLC (Software Testing Life Cycle). You will also learn different kinds of testing, web applications, and modern application architecture.

2. Core Java

Java is the most important programming language for an aspiring SDET. The program will teach you Java core concepts and provide practice tests for mastery. In addition, you will learn to write test automation scripts with Selenium WebDriver and object-oriented programming.

3. Selenium Web Driver

The Selenium Web Driver section of the course lasts six weeks and covers everything you need to know about Selenium. The automated testing framework tests web applications across different platforms and browsers. You will also learn how to automate regression for a real project.

Whether you want to start as a manual tester or become an SDET, TEST PRO has courses that can fully prepare you for either role.

To know more, check out our in-depth review of TEST PRO here.

Launch Your Career with TEST PRO

Software Quality Assurance offers an avenue for a fulfilling tech career, even for those without prior coding knowledge or background. On top of that, a QA job has been said to be personally fulfilling and financially lucrative. If you look at average salaries across the US, those working in QA earn higher than the median wage of workers in the US.

To give an idea, the median wage across all positions and industries in the second quarter of 2022 was $54,132 per year. But manual QA testers earned an average annual salary of $77,826, while QA Automation testers earned $92,868.

These and more are incentives for you to consider launching a career in QA. Whether you want to be a manual or automation QA, TEST PRO can help you get there. So, what are you waiting for? Book a call with TEST PRO, and make your way toward your new career!